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Former American artistic gymnast McKayla Maroney has praised her former teammate and six-time Olympic medalist Aly Raisman, publicly acknowledging her bravery and vulnerability.
Maroney represented the United States at the 2012 London Olympics, where she won a gold in the team event and a silver in the vault event. She was also the 2011 world champion in vault and team events, as well as the Pan American champion in floor exercise, vault, and team events. During the 2013 world championship, Maroney became the first American female gymnast to defend her vault title following her victory over her compatriot Simone Biles.
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In 2016, the California native bid adieu to her decorated gymnastics career at the age of 20. However, just a year after her retirement, Maroney made sexual abuse allegations against USA women's gymnastics team physician Larry Nassar. Her teammate Aly Raisman was one of the first gymnasts to speak out against Nassar, followed by more than 265 female gymnasts, including Simone Biles.
Aly Raisman appeared on Alex Cooper's "Call Her Daddy" podcast on Wednesday, July 17. The gymnast revealed that she was hospitalized twice for having "stroke-like symptoms," stemming from trauma and stress related to the Nassar incident.
McKayla Maroney was quick to react to the revelation, sharing a post on her Instagram and expressing pride in Raisman for speaking out.
"Aly baby. u know i love youuu. So I’m sorry to post such a low quality selfie just really proud of you and your vulnerability on the call her daddy podcast. It can be scary to be real, when we were trained to show up “perfect” … down to the littlest details. I remember when our coaches used to ask if we were okay. We were trained to say “yes” no matter how we felt (or what body part was broken lol.)"
"Those things made us really tough athletes, which I’m thankful for… but long term it doesn’t build the healthiest foundation for a person. With that being said, I’ve watched you work incredibly hard on yourself to grow into someone who can speak out and make a difference for girls like us. You inspire me @alyraisman," she added.
Aly Raisman shares how McKayla Maroney's encouragement helped her at the London Olympics
McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman represented the United States together at multiple elite competitions, achieving several titles. One of these came at the 2012 London Olympics, where the two won the team all-around title. Raisaman won a gold in the floor exercise and a bronze in the balance beam.
Raisman, who was debuting at the London Games, felt nervous and heartbroken after finishing fourth in the individual all-around apparatus. McKayla Maroney's cheers helped her immensely during the other events at the competition.
"I could always hear my coach and I could always hear my teammate McKayla Maroney in the stands. I just remember listening to her and having her sought of help me and guide me and her cheering really helped calm me down because when we were in practice." Raisman told BBC News.
She added that Maroney's voice could easily block the outside noise, allowing her to hear her even when they were apart in the arena.
